Indian American Founder of Bitcoin Startup May Be Up for Food and Drug Administration Post

Express News Global

Published: January 16, 2017

21.co chief executive and Stanford University lecturer Balaji Srinivasan, an Indian American who has openly criticized the FDA, is being considered by President-elect Donald Trump for a top position within the administration. (Andreesen Horowitz photo)

Balaji Srinivasan, Indian American chief executive officer at bitcoin startup 21.co, has met with President-elect Donald Trump about the future of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

The duo is being considered for a top FDA position, incoming White House press secretary Sean Spicer said, according to a CNBC report.

Srinivasan, who also serves as a partner at VC firm Andreessen Horowitz, is an expert in the subjects of digital payments and computational biology, and teaches at Stanford University.

His expertise in health regulation stems back to a start-up he co-founded, Counsyl, which offers DNA screening, especially for people considering having children. CNBC reported.

The Indian American executive has been on record in the past criticizing the FDA, saying “big bad pharma does exist,” adding that the administration “sets the incentives.”

Srinivasan holds a B.S., M.S. and doctorate in electrical engineering and an M.S. in chemical engineering from Stanford.

He was the chief technology officer and co-founder of Counsyl, a genomics startup that began in a Stanford dorm room and now tests four percent of all U.S. births, until 2012 when he stepped back from an executive role in November 2012 to work on other areas of technology.